Under Section 49A of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA 1995) (as amended by Article 5 of the Disability Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 2006), the Civil Service Commissioners for Northern Ireland are required when carrying out their functions to have due regard to the need to:·
- Promote positive attitudes towards disabled people; and
- Encourage participation by disabled people in public life (‘the disability duties’).
Under Section 49B of the DDA 1995, the Civil Service Commissioners are also required to submit to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI) a disability action plan showing how they propose to fulfil these duties in relation to their functions.
In 2022, following consultation, Commissioners published a new Disability Action Plan 2022-27 as required by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.
In addition to the Disability Action Plan, Commissioners reinforced their commitment to promoting the equality of opportunity in recruitment to the NICS by adding the paragraph below to the Recruitment Code:
Paragraph 2.12:
Commissioners support the application of positive actions to promote equality of opportunity for people with disabilities who may otherwise have difficulty gaining access to employment in the NICS. They welcome the fact that the effect of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 is to ensure that the appointment of persons with a disability to situations in the NICS is in accordance with the Merit Principle.